I’m happy again. Do you ever hear something that just gives you goosebumps. A song. A bird song. A breeze. You feel a flicker. A flicker. I don’t have much tonight or this week. I played driver. That’s about it.
I keep running into a total idiot from my past. I mean, we were friends but it was 10 years ago. He is still an idiot. Maybe more so than before. I am nice, but how much of a fool can one take. A fool is a fool.
Sunday funday. Went to brunch w/ The Slovak & 2 of her friends. Had some drinks and some great food. Enjoyed the company. Afterwards her and I decided to go out and have a few more drinks. I do look forward to my weekends with her We always have fun. 17 years. I think we know each other pretty well. Probably one of the longest consecutive friendships I’ve had.
I also have a new nephew, Jackson. He looks to be an adorable boy and I’m so happy for my little family.
Birthday girl Yvette got some presents &I made my first ever cheese cake. Probably my first ever cake come to think about it. I know her daughter loved it. I cut up some fresh strawberries and delivered 3 to her on campus. I remember why I don’t bake. I can, but I don’t. But it was worth it. Made the young lady happy. Everyone should be happy on their birthdays, I’ve learned.
Just a note to you all. No one ever wants to be replaced but sometimes being replaced is a gift to you. I sure know I’m in a better place. Cheers!
The croc found his 3rd home one campus.
New gallery. Eh.
Lisa needs to make a pedestal for my art.
Jalapeño
I’ve been meaning to try this. Alfredo burger. It was f***ing good.
Egg roll stir fry.
Sesame chicken.
Steak, mashed potato & asparagus.
Chicken pasta salad?
Peanut butter jelly burger. I was going to add bacon but didn’t think it needed. This was a curious venture. It was F***ING AMAZING!
On on hand I had a great Saturday. Cashed in my rain check from a canceled “date” weeks before. I hope I’m not over doing the flirtation. I don’t know WTF I’m doing but it is fun. Adult company. First it was for 1 but we really didn’t want brunch. Than it was 3 but oh no, they close at 3 and open again at 4:30. None of this was explained to me by any of the people that I talked to…. Planning these things.. out of touch. We decided 4 and somewhere else. It was a 2 hour affair and the next day my abs hurt so bad from all the laughs I wondered if I did sit ups sleepwalking. Fun first “date”. Pretty sure she had fun. Went to the museum downtown. Had forgotten Ice Cube, Cypress Hill & other rap groups were playing. It was hilarious people watching. The art was the 2nd best part.
On the other hand, my ex sent me a WTF text message Sunday evening. Unprovoked bull****. I had so many questions. Told me to grow up. Said I was talking s*** on social media. (Never happened. Is this social media? It’s not open to everyone. Most don’t even know who she is. I also don’t talk shit about her to people in person. No idea what that was about and I likely never will.). She asked me to send dog pictures so I did. “Don’t do that anymore! Don’t text me.” I sure as f*** will not. I replied, more or less, sure. I don’t care. I don’t think about her, thanks to her actions. Might have been a little harsh but she didn’t have to go there. Why send a long insulting text to me. That’s grown up. Who has been the “grown up” through all off this? Not her. It was kind of funny. It was also deeply sad. I shouldn’t be surprised at this point. I did wake up thinking to myself why the heck did she do that and what the heck was she even talking about. Who f***ing knows. The drink…. I don’t wish ill will. I just don’t like being treated like shit. I’ve had a lot of fuel to be an a**hole and I’ve done well with restraint. There was not reason for that text. Maybe the boyfriend or sister thought that would be cool? Again, who cares. Children. Move on.
Summary: It was a far better weekend than a bad one. Another women brought me up & my ex can’t kill my joy ever again.
The work week was okay. Someone walked away with our office pet. Nothing is safe on this campus. I watched “Nightmare Alley. Deeply disturbing and dark. I LOVED it!! National puppy day. Friday rolled around. The weekend I might meet up with The Slovak. Time will tell. Just having fun.
Jalapeño
Pizza that I made. Heavy on the jalapeño. Leftovers found a home.
Grilled chicken, onion, jalapeño, cheese and a spicy green sauce.
Salmon & broccoli cheese jalapeño.
Creamy Alfredo bow tie pasta. (Thank you Jamie, for saving the day!). I added chicken, sun dried tomatoes, spinach, broccoli & a little ghost pepper. Yeah, the ghost.
Monday and the time change. Why oh why!! It was also one windy SOB. My key gripe in life is the f***ing wind. Hate it. So when I was out & about on campus and beheld a small clutter of kids flying kites, I paused and watched them for a bit. They put to good use what I despised. The wind essential to their fun. I miss the simplicity of fun.
I listen to classical music every night. Or opera. It’s a new thing since the divorce. It’s beautiful. The movements. The grace. The warmth. I don’t think enough of us humans listen to the greats. It’s true beauty. What they say with their instruments. Art. It’s become my new sleep aid.
It was Spring Break on campus. So very quiet. It was 2 years ago that the world shutdown from the pandemic. It’s hard to think how much has happened in that time. What isolation does. It definitely had an negative affect on my wedding. I was stuck at home while Bekah was still trucking. Our shared weekends with friends basically ceased. Oh well, life moved on and so did we.
It gave me a friend in Yvette. One that I hardly knew before the shutdown. Before Jamie made a group text. Jamie and I grew closer, bonding over whatever BS was presented to us. Lots of needed phone talks. Isolation was lonely at times. I exercised, walking miles a day. Boy I miss that. What a crazy week it was. The talk going around. What was to happen. The toilet paper wars. I’m fairly certain I’ll relive that week every spring break. No way around it. What a ride.
Saint Patrick’s Day. What a day. I didn’t do anything. The last Patty’s Day I did was right before shit down with Bekah at the Penny. It was weird. No one wanted to really be close to each other. That’s was the last bar experience in over a year. I’m glad we went. I did make my own green beer.
Happy Friday.
A gift. A joy.
Jalapeño
Coconut curry chicken. It’s been a long while.
The rest of the week will be seafood. (Lies) To kick things off I made some fish tacos with cod.
Seared tuna, seaweed salad (someone complained every time we had seaweed) & of course, some jalapeño.
They f***ed up my seafood week. 2 days…. It was worth it. Time with mom & Teddy.
Discordance finally found peace. A cacophony at ease. Beauty at the end of disease. Prison gates opened. Almost ran to ground. Broken blades. Shards, splinters. Opened. Revival. Present. Here I am. True & happy. Dreams have broken. New dreams are always around.
Monday was a hell of a Monday The most excitement that I had was driving Yvette & Jamie around campus. I was soooo sleepy and do drank too much coffee to counter the yawns and I gave myself a sour stomach. Thought I might blow chunks at one point.
Tuesday was amazing. I actually woke up from a very restful night. Much needed. That was the beginning of the day. Later that morning it was divorce news. Everything was finally aligned. The endgame was in sight. It’s weird to admit this, but my mood was elevated. Goofed off with coworkers. Saw friends. Bounced around.
I took off work at 4:30 to get ready for The Deans birthday party. Neighborhood bar. The Parrots. I should have warned the bartender whom I’ve known for over 20 years. I wasn’t expecting nearly 30 people to arrive. I was a social butterfly for a man that hates being social. I have no problem doing it I just don’t like it. After it was over Jamie gave me the leftover cake which I shared with my mom and some coworkers. Sorry, Jamie. Sorry Mel. I finished with some Asian food and another drink. It was a f***ing great day.
Wednesday i woke up tired. I didn’t sleep for s***! That Sandman is a slacker. Yvette was also yawning so we got coffee. I took off early to go get some affairs in order. Dropped of the divorce work and decided to treat myself to a nice meal. It’s not everyday you have a day like this. I pretended my meal was half my savings. Most expensive salmon on earth. I ate everything. Licked the plate. I saw a 6th grade teacher at the bar that I thought must have been dead. 28 years since I’d seen the man. The music that played was aligned with my positive disposition. Again, a great f***ing day.
Thursday wasn’t bad. Saw my lady friends, of course. Played. Most uneventful day. What the hell. They can’t all be winners. It was warm. Mid-70. Friday would be much different.
Student art:
Friday I bailed early.
Jalapeño
I made a bunless burger using my Italian meatball recipe. Covered in melted swizz cheese over a bed of marinara sauce, it was a real delight.
I was happy to see a friend that I’ve missed for 5 long years. It was as if a day had not passed. Wednesday her and I hung out. I took half a day. We spent 6 hours. I saw her again on Friday. The evening was great. Next morning we had some brunch and I took her to the airport. I already miss her. I forgot how much she meant to me as the years passed by. I don’t plan on as much time passing before we are together again.
Jalapeño
Stir fry with grilled chicken thigh.
Queso chicken over Spanish rice. I cheated on the rice.
Super Bowl Sunday. I was greeting looking forward to talking smack to Yvette. I had no stakes in the game. Secretly I was going for The Bangles just so she could have her victory but she wasn’t going to know that. Why ruin the fun. S*** talking is a great joy.
Monday was rough. My sugars were f***ed. 34 level when I woke up. It’s exhausting fighting your own body all day. I took Tuesday off. Had a “date”. Came back Wednesday & Thursday. Continued to fight my sugar level. Said “f*** it!” And took Friday off. Had another “date”. It was such an eventful week. “Eyes rolling out of my f***ing head.”
Jalapeño
Late lunch wings at BWW’s. Mango Habanero & Orange Chicken.
What can I say about this week? It was productive. Had a tree finally removed for a reasonable price on Saturday. Pecan. They knocked it out in no time. After wards I ran errands around town before finally meeting a friend for drinks. Poor girl lost her dog for a month and finally found it to only have the dog in such bad health it had to be put down. I feel her pain. It’s hard. We had fun though.
Monday I filed taxes married but separate. Took the afternoon off and had some good food and drinks at Zero One. Why the heck not. Wednesday I got the paper work and I will be getting a return. Exciting! The week went by extremely fast. Janine broke and elevator and set off a fire alarm. Which cleared the building emptying offices and classrooms. I bought her a cookie. She f***ing needed it. We are getting a Chipotle!
Hazel this week.
Doctor visits, oh how a hate thee. Thursday I had my lab work. The vampire was by far the chattiest one I’ve ever encountered. She had me trapped and she had a needle. I was helpless. The next day my doctors visit was about the same as last time. Work harder. Now that I’m out of my funk I’ve actually been working harder. So I assured him the next time he sees me I will have made some changes. I did admire the art that they had on the walls.
After the doctor visit I met up with a friend who was in town. We had a quick drink before she hurried home promising for a longer visit the following weekend. The evening was nice so I made a cocktail and sat outside with the grill burning. It was a nice week.
Jalapeño.
Poached eggs over toast & chorizo covered in a spicy hollandaise sauce.
Pineapple on pizza for the win! I made this!
Chorizo potato egg burrito.
My basic chili.
Orange chicken stir-fry.
Yakatori chicken.
Variant style of orange chicken.
Chicken, mushrooms, peppers, onion & golden mushroom soup over rice. Seasoned up.
What a week! Boxes of paper. I swear. Fulfill a contract.
Speaking of contracts, I helped our contract girl move. Good for her! She needed it. Unhappy for a long time. Unfortunately I probably won’t see her as much. I suppose I’ll make random visits now. I volunteered to move her fridge. I almost puked. The smell of that thing. Covid clearly f***ed up her sense of smell. My garbage doesn’t smell that bad. I went and huffed sanitizing wipes. I wanted bleach!!!! F***!!!
So the ground hog died. It was a sign “winter was coming”. It did. We had 2 snow days. The work week ended up being 3 days and the weekend 4. Thursday woke up to ice and snow. I never left the house. My children played. They love the cold snow. Honestly Friday we could have easily gone into work. I’m glad we didn’t. Haha
I started watching a show called Peacemaker. Let’s just say that going in I was not expecting much. I’m so glad I was wrong. I laughed and laughed and laughed. The intro, which I usually skip, I watched ever episode. It was just good dumb fun. I watched 5 hours. James Gunn never disappoints. This show is a hard “R”.
Perfect week!!!
Jalapeño
This cold weeks food theme is Tex-Mex.
Spicy shrimp & Spanish rice. My first attempt at Spanish rice ever. It always Bekah’s task and well, she don’t live here anymore. Yvette was kind enough to explain to me how it needed to be made. For a first attempt I must say I impressed myself. Or maybe this was how it was meant to be made all along?
Green enchilada chicken. I made it WAY hot.
Fajita chicken & I’m still nursing that rice.
Fideo loco w/ cheese.
Snow day brunch. Chorizo egg and peppers breakfast tacos.
Carne en su jugo.
Snow day brunch pt. 2. Chorizo cheese omelette with various hot sauce & Serrano pepper.
I began the process of redecorating my house to make it more me and less familiar. It’s good for the mental health.
Weird things we consider office art.
We had some nice cold gloomy days this week. Wednesday it never broke 40. Worked through lunch and took off at 1 to meet for a late lunch at 2. A couple drinks. It was a good time. She recommended the Diabla Shrimp. Not expecting it to actually be hot, I ordered jalapeño to go along with it. They were not needed. I’m not accustomed to menu items actually being hot unless I specify that’s what I want. I was pleasantly surprised. Might be my new favorite item.
It was a great week.
Jalapeño
Sloppy Joe lettuce wraps.
Okinawa taco rice.
Burger Bowl.
Seaseme Chicken.
Carry out. Lotus Cafe. This came highly recommended and it was not a letdown. It was funny. I ordered it over the phone by googling the number. I get there and I have no order. I look at my phone and it seems a place in Arlington goes by the same name and has the same kind of food. Hahaha. Oops. It took less than 5 min for them to complete my order.
En Fuego 